Bellyful East Auckland

12/10/2026

💚⛽ A HUGE THANK YOU, Z BOTANY & Z PAKURANGA! 💚

We are absolutely thrilled to share that, thanks to the incredible generosity and support of Z Botany and Z Pakuranga, Bellyful East Auckland has received a whopping $3,259 through the Z Energy Good in the Hood campaign! 🥳🎉

A massive thank you to everyone who voted for us and helped make this possible. Your support means so much to our little charity and the local whānau we support. 🫶💚

These funds will help us continue cooking and delivering free, ready-to-heat meals to local families with babies and young children who need a helping hand. 🍲👶💕

We are so grateful to our local Z stations for supporting our community and giving Bellyful East Auckland the opportunity to be part of this amazing campaign. Every dollar makes a difference, helping us put food on tables and take a little pressure off families when they need it most. 💚

Ngā mihi nui to Z Botany, Z Pakuranga and everyone who supported us! 🥰🙌

🔗 Need a little support? Referrals can be made here:
https://bellyful.org.nz/bellyful-branches/east-auckland/

10/10/2026

🎒📚 BACK TO SCHOOL… WE’RE READY TO HELP! 💛✨

The school bags are packed, uniforms are (hopefully! 😂) clean, lunchboxes are ready to go and the alarm clocks are officially back in action! ⏰🙌

After the holidays, we know getting everyone back into the school routine can be a little bit hectic — especially for families juggling work, school, little ones and everything in between!

And while we’re excited to see the kids heading back to school, we also want to remind our Bellyful whānau that we’re here to help. 🥰

If you have a baby or young children and a limited support network, you can request a delivery of our free, ready-to-heat meals to help take a little pressure off at mealtimes. 🥘💕

You don’t have to wait until things feel completely overwhelming — a little extra support can make a big difference. 💛

👉🏻 Place a referral here:
https://bellyful.org.nz/bellyful-branches/east-auckland/

So here’s to a new school term, fresh routines, full freezers and lots of happy, healthy whānau! 🎒✨

Remember — Bellyful East Auckland is here when you need us. 💛

08/10/2026

✨ A Huge Month of Helping Hands

September was a HUGE month for Bellyful East Auckland!

24 volunteers delivered an amazing 227meals to local whānau, along with 50 meals to the Middlemore NICU. 🥘✨

Every meal delivered is more than just food — it's support, kindness, and a reminder that no family has to face life's challenges alone. Whether welcoming a new baby, navigating illness, or simply going through a tough time, we're proud to help lighten the load for families in our community.

A heartfelt thank you to our dedicated volunteers who generously give their time, energy, and compassion. You are the heart of Bellyful East Auckland, and these results simply wouldn't be possible without you. 💕

Know a whānau who could use a helping hand? You can make a referral here:
🔗 bellyful.org.nz/bellyful-branches/east-auckland

08/10/2026

🌟💛 **VOLUNTEER OF THE MONTH — LARA!** 💛🌟

There were a few contenders this month because, honestly, all of our volunteers are all amazing!** 🥰🙌

But… *drum roll please* 🥁🥁🥁

🏆 **Our Volunteer of the Month goes to LARA!** 🎉💛

As one of our newest volunteers, Lara has absolutely **thrown herself into Bellyful**! She’s already joined us for a couple of Cook-a-thons 👩🏻‍🍳 and has been out delivering meals to whānau too. 💕

Then one morning, Lara messaged asking if there were any jobs she could help with as she had a couple of days off work. 🙌

We asked if she could **defrost and give our Beachlands freezer a good clean** — a job that doesn’t come around often because it takes a bit of time, planning and finding someone with a spare few hours.

It had been sitting on the “to-do” list for a wee while… but thanks to Lara, it’s now officially **TICKED OFF!** ✅✨

And she’s not stopping there! Lara will also be popping past our other freezers when she can to give them a wipe down and make sure they’re looking clean, tidy and ready to go. 🧽✨

Lara, we really appreciate you! 💛 Thank you for putting your hand up to help, for throwing yourself into Bellyful so enthusiastically, and especially for giving up some of your **own holiday time** to get this job done.

You’re an absolute ⭐ and we’re so lucky to have you as part of our Bellyful whānau! 💛

**Congratulations Lara — very well deserved!** 👏🏻🥰

07/10/2026

👩🏻‍🍳✨ COOK-a-THON RECORD SMASHED! ✨👩🏻‍🍳

Our morning & evening Cook-a-thon teams have absolutely cooked up a storm this week — and we’ve got an ALL-TIME RECORD to celebrate! 🎉🙌🏻

Together at the Howick Pakuranga Netball Centre our incredible volunteers cooked a whopping 297 meals between our morning and evening cook-a-thons! 🥘🍝🍲

Our freezers are now beautifully stocked with delicious, homemade meals, ready to fill the bellies of local whānau who need a little extra support. 💛

A HUGE ngā mihi to every single one of our amazing volunteers who give their time, energy and heart to make these Cook-a-thons happen. We couldn’t do it without you! 🫶🏻

If you or someone you know could use some support, free Bellyful meals are available by referral.

🔗 https://bellyful.org.nz/bellyful-branches/east-auckland/

06/10/2026

💜 A huge thank you to Beachlands-Maraetai Playcentre Playcentre! 💜

We’re so grateful for the wonderful support Beachlands-Maraetai Playcentre has shown Bellyful. 🫶🏻

Their generous offer to be a local drop off point for Spaghetti September has helped us continue preparing and delivering free meals to local families with young children who are going through a challenging time. 🥘💜

It means so much to have our local community behind us, and we’re incredibly thankful to the Beachlands Playcentre whānau for helping us make a difference, one meal at a time. 🥹

Thank you for your kindness, generosity and support — we truly appreciate you! 💜

Ngā mihi nui, Beachlands-Maraetai Playcentre! 🫶🏻

04/10/2026

Looking for something fun FREE to do this arvo?? Look no further ☀️

🌳💛 TOGETHER IN THE PARK – A FREE FAMILY FUN DAY! 💛🌳

Come along and join our Youth Board for Together in the Park — a fun, relaxed day for families and the whole community to connect, create and enjoy some time together! 🥰
🎨 Face painting
🔎 Treasure hunt
🎨 Rock art
📸 Have your photo taken in our photoframe
🫧 Bubbles and plenty of fun!
And the best part? All of the activities are completely FREE! 🎉
Our Youth Board has been working hard to create an event that brings families and our community together — because sometimes the simplest things make the best memories. ❤️
🌭 We’ll also have a fundraising sausage sizzle available, so come hungry and help support the Youth Board!
Bring the kids, bring your friends, and come Together in the Park! 🌿☀️

📅 5th October
⏰ 1:00-3:00pm
📍 Barry Curtis Park, by the playground on Stancombe Road

We can’t wait to see you there! 💛



www.youthprojectnz.org

01/10/2026

🍝💜 102 PACKETS OF SPAGHETTI… WOW! 💜🍝

A HUGE thank you to PAK’nSAVE Highland Park for being one of our amazing Spaghetti September collection points! 🛒🍝 Your support made it so easy for our wonderful community to get behind Bellyful East Auckland. 💚

And to EVERYONE who donated — THANK YOU! 🥹💜 Together, you donated an incredible 102 packets of spaghetti! 🙌

And we have to give a special shoutout to one absolute legend who donated 28 packets ALL ON THEIR OWN! 😱🍝

Whoever you are… THANK YOU! You are AMAZING! 🫶

Every packet helps us keep our shelves stocked so we can continue cooking and delivering free meals to local whānau who need a little extra support. 💛

Thank you, East Auckland community — you’re pasta-tively awesome! 🍝💜✨